Major Launches in Past Week


Last week's Town Hall featured a presentation about the MoonDAO Summer Internship (currently up for vote by MoonDAO members), as well as roundtable project updates on MOONEY Distribution, the Citizen & Entity Go-To-Market project, Desci CVs, Second Astronaut Support, Skyline Digital, and Nance Integration. If you'd like to contribute to one of these initiatives, please reach out on Discord! The meeting concluded with an open floor discussion.

24 Hours Left to Vote

Voting is now open for MDP-144: MoonDAO Summer Internship

This summer internship program would engage ambitious undergraduate students in contributing to space exploration and MoonDAO’s mission by assisting Executive Branch members in various tasks, including ongoing projects, as well as offering time to pursue self-directed open-source projects. This initiative aims to provide hands-on experience, foster collaboration, and support the advancement of MoonDAO's objectives in space exploration, while also establishing deeper connections with up and coming college students in the space industry. Total Cost: 5.2681 ETH

If you are an undergraduate student that would be a good fit, or know someone that would be, be sure to complete the internship interest form.

New Member Spotlight

Have you shared your story in the introductions channel?

Hoppy writes: “Hey everyone! I am a 20 year old 3D artist and video editor! I have always been fascinated by space and wish to go there in the future!”

Let’s give a friendly MoonDAO welcome as they join our community!

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Bite-Sized Space News

Starship Fourth Flight, Soft Landings

On June 6, 2024, SpaceX's Starship successfully launched its fourth flight test from Starbase in Texas, achieving significant milestones towards demonstrating its reuse and return capabilities. The Super Heavy booster executed a successful full-duration ascent burn, hot-stage separation, and a controlled splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico. Starship's second stage Raptor engines powered the vehicle to space, followed by a controlled reentry and descent.

The flight was impressive on a number of fronts, but one of the most memorable parts to viewers might have been the live view of Starship's forward flap seemingly burning up from the heat of reentry, only to emerge back into view from the haze and soot covered camera, still alive and moving, helping to achieve a soft splashdown in the Indian Ocean. Elon has since shared that the planned fifth flight test could be as soon as July, although that is quite likely in Elon Time, which never seems to happen exactly when he says it will.

Final Virgin Unity Flight

On Saturday, Virgin Galactic's VSS Unity completed its final flight, reaching 54.4 miles above the New Mexico desert with four passengers. After seven commercial flights in the past year, the spacecraft will be retired as the company shifts focus to developing a new "Delta class" of spaceships, expected to fly by 2026. Despite significant financial losses and a challenging development history, Virgin Galactic aims to produce more reusable vehicles and increase passenger capacity, targeting 750 passengers annually by 2027. Although that ambitious goal hinges on meeting ambitious timelines, sustaining demand, and avoiding operational setbacks, all while striving to achieve profitability and expanding operations.

Boeing's Starliner Mission Extended

Boeing's Starliner capsule launched its first astronaut mission, Crew Flight Test (CFT), on June 5, carrying NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to the International Space Station (ISS). Initially planned as a week-long mission, it has been extended to a return date of no earlier than June 18 to allow for additional activities, including a spacewalk on June 13 and further system checkouts. This mission follows Starliner's previous uncrewed test flights, which encountered several issues. Despite facing challenges such as helium leaks and thruster problems during CFT, the mission has been progressing successfully. If all goes well, Starliner will be certified to conduct six-month astronaut missions to the ISS, alongside SpaceX's Dragon capsule.

Upcoming Launches

  • SpaceX Falcon 9 | Starlink Group 10-2 on Wed Jun 12, 2024 4:08 PM GMT-5 from SLC-40, Cape Canaveral SFS, Florida, USA
  • SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 | Starlink Group 9-1 on Thu Jun 13, 2024 10:00 PM GMT-5 from SLC-4E, Vandenberg SFB, California, USA
  • SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 | Astra 1P/SES-24 on Mon Jun 17, 2024 4:35 PM GMT-5 from SLC-40, Cape Canaveral SFS, Florida, USA

That’s it for your MoonDAO updates this week. Join us on Discord to stay up-to-date with all the latest developments.

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